The Things That Bring Us Together
by Flying-Faerie
Summary: Dark Ace x Master Cyclonis. Things that happen which lead to Dark Ace and Master Cyclonis becoming a couple.
1. Sword

Authors Note: This is my first story posted, so if I've made a mistake please tell me. I know the summary sucks, but it's all that I could think of.

Summary: Dark Ace x Master Cyclonis. Things that happen which lead to Dark Ace and Master Cylonis becoming a couple.

Disclamer: I do not own Storm Hawks.

**The Things That Bring Us Together**

Chapter One – Sword

The Dark Ace smiled as he flew back to Cyclonia, pleased that he had tricked that stupid boy and completed his mission for his Master. It had been a clever plan of hers really. He had been sent to steal a powerful crystal for her, but pretended to be stealing the plans for the prison on Terra Atmosia. He had run into the _Storm Hawks _but they had just taken the plans, he still had the crystal. He parked his skimmer and headed to Master Cyclonis' crystal lab.

"Master Cyclonis." Dark Ace bowed to Master Cyclonis who turned around and smiled.

"Well? Do you have it?" She questioned. He pulled the crystal out of his pocket and held it out for her. Grinning, she took the crystal and placed it on her desk to be looked at later. "What happened to your sword?" She asked, noticing that it was bent.

"Oh, it got bent while I was fighting, and Aerrow took my fire bolt crystal…" Dark Ace looked to the ground, slightly ashamed admitting that to her.

"Good." He looked at her questioningly. "I have something for you." Master Cyclonis turned around and pulled out a box, holding it out to him and lifting the lid she revealed a new sword, with different coloured crystals in it and a fire bolt crystal next to it. "I made these myself. The fire bolt crystal is stronger than your old one so try not to lose it. The sword it made of tougher material than your usual one so it is less likely to break, and using the crystals along it creates different types of blasts, for instance ice, fire, and one that explodes on contact." She held the box with one hand and pulled out a small hand-written booklet from her cloak. "This will tell you what each crystal will do, but if you would like to experiment yourself then at least read the warnings." She placed the booklet in the box, closed the lid and handed it to him.

Dark Ace just stared at her for a moment after taking it. "Thank you, you highness." _She made these herself? For me? Maybe she was sick of me messing up and thought this would help._

"You may leave, and I suggest you practice with that before you use it in battle." Master Cyclonis turned back around and began to work on the crystal Dark Ace had stolen for her. Realising what she had said, the Dark Ace went back to his bedroom to rest for a while.

_

* * *

__I hope he likes it. _Master Cyclonis thought as she took notes on her new crystal. _That sword took weeks to make perfect, I wonder if he prefers his old sword. That would make sense, he has had it for a long time, maybe he doesn't want to change it. _She paused in her work as she continued to think about the Dark Ace. _I have got to stop obsessing over him. He is so much older than me, he just thinks of me as the Ruler of Cyclonia, nothing else. He probably saved me when my Storm Engine failed because otherwise there would be no-one set to rule, not because he cares about me as a person… _She sighed. _Well, anyway I'm tired and I can't focus on my crystals while I'm thinking about him, so I'll just have an early night. _Master Cyclonis stood up and went down to her bedroom where she changed into her pyjamas and snuggled up in bed.

"_Cyclonis!" The Dark Ace yelled as he stormed into her Crystal Lab._

"_Oh, you're hurt!" She said quietly as she noticed the blood on his uniform._

"_Yes, I am! I was beaten by that little boy again! This is your fault, stop coming up with these stupid plans, can't you do anything right?!" He shouted as he stood right in front of her._

"_But I-"_

"_Shut up!" He back-handed her and she fell to the floor, a shocked expression on her face. "I hate you! Stupid little girl!" He yelled as he kicked her over and over. "Why don't you just die!" He pulled out a knife and stabbed her through her heart._

Master Cyclonis sat up in bed, panting. "No, it was just a dream… He wouldn't, would he?" She said to herself. "I know what I should do!"

* * *

"Amazing." Dark Ace muttered as he saw the damage a blow from his new sword could do. He tested a few different styles of attack before looking through the booklet to see what the crystals could do.

There were nine crystals in total, three of them he needed a bigger space to use. One of these three crystals created a huge explosion where it hit, but the sword had to be far away from that point, otherwise the user could be injured by the explosion. Another sent an invisible blast of great strength, it could break through trees or boulders, or create a hole in the side of a building. Another would create a large fog in a certain direction. The crystals he could practice were one that turned things to ice on contact, another that would burn things, one that would send strong wind and one that would create a small fog so that the target could not see the actual blast coming. The last two were one that would drain a crystal of its power if it hit it directly and one that would create a shield around the user, although the shield was not too strong it could block weaker attacks and lessen the damage of stronger ones. Most of these crystals could not be used too much without being replaced or they could stop working or the effect would be much weaker, there was a note saying that the crystals may take a while to remake.

_This seems like a lot of work, even for Master Cyclonis. I have to take care of this sword, and this fire bolt crystal, it's the strongest I've ever seen. Plus this should help me take down that stupid Storm Hawk, I should've killed him when I had the chance. But I should thank Master Cyclonis again for this._

* * *

"You wanted to see me, Master?" Dark Ace bowed to her as usual.

"Yes, I am planning an invasion and I thought that you could help…" Master Cyclonis explained, "You have more experience in actual battle and I thought that you would know the best way to go about doing this." _I hope he agrees to help, then I get to spend some more time with him, especially if this becomes a regular thing._

"Of course, which terra is it?" Master Cyclonis showed Dark Ace the plans she had come up with, and he suggested ways to improve them, also telling her how many talons were needed and where they should be positioned. _I didn't think Master Cyclonis was the type of person to ask for help… Maybe it's because of the number of failures recently, she wants to do things as well as possible. _Dark Ace thought, watching her as she wrote a few things down.

"So, you're saying to cause a distraction in the west, so the Sky Knight squadron would go there, then to attack from the east where their weak point is." Master Cyclonis clarified.

"Exactly, you see…" He went on to explain the details, while thinking about her. _She learns fast too, she's already picking up battle planning skills, and she is a genius with crystals. Plus she's really pretty. No! I can't think like that. She's only a teenager, it isn't right for me to think of her that way, I can't believe I like her that way…_


	2. Sky Fu

Author's Note: Master Cyclonis and Dark Ace may seem OOC here. The 'objects that can be moved' are to practice fighting in a crowded space. I don't mean to make Master Cyclonis seem weak, she isn't although it may seem like it in this chapter.

Thank you _CRAYZAYbecky _for the review.

Summary: Dark Ace x Master Cyclonis. Things that happen which lead to Dark Ace and Master Cylonis becoming a couple.

Disclaimer: I do not own Storm Hawks.

**The Things That Bring Us Together**

Chapter Two – Sky Fu

"Master Cyclonis." Dark Ace bowed to her as she continued pressing buttons for her crystals, not bothering to turn around.

"Soon you will be going on a 2-day mission, it may be a couple of weeks before you leave, but the mission is to retrieve a crystal from Terra Saharr for me. The details are written here." She held out a rolled up piece of paper for him, as he walked up to her and took it. He quietly skimmed it.

"My new sword should come in useful for this," He smiled, "I've been practicing with it like you suggested, thank you, Master Cyclonis." Master Cyclonis' eyes widened, _He likes it, _she thought, _and he thanked me again!_

"You're welcome." She said, trying not to show how happy she was.

* * *

_I've been working on this for seven hours, and I still can't work it out! _Master Cyclonis thought, frowning. She glared at the crystal on her desk before realising that glaring wouldn't help. _If I combine it with… No, I tried that, it melted._ Deciding to take a break, she looked over a few pieces of paper on her desk. _I need to contact Ravess today, to see how my latest project is going. I have to finish that machine to send off to her, otherwise my project won't work. Oh, I forgot I was only taking a break from that to work on this crystal, seven hours ago… _She walked over to a smaller table to try and get the machine working. She was wearing extra make-up, to cover the huge bags under her eyes, due to working so hard that she forgot to sleep and eat. Master Cyclonis went back to her crystal lab to work on a different crystal experiment, hoping it would inspire her to find a way to fix her machine.

"Master Cyclonis," Dark Ace bowed to her in her crystal lab. "There was a message from Ravess, she says the project is slightly behind schedule, because of Sky Knights attacking. She can't talk to you today as she is fighting." By now Master Cyclonis was facing him. She nodded and turned back to her work when she got dizzy, and placed a hand to her head. "Master, are you feeling alright?" She nodded again, then swayed slightly and fainted. "Master!" Dark Ace rushed over to her, realising she had just collapsed from exhaustion, he gently picked her up, his arms around her back and under her knees. He knew she wouldn't want to be taken to the hospital, so he took her down a secret staircase, the corridor at the bottom was where he bedroom was. No-one was allowed down this corridor, but Dark Ace thought it would be best for her to be in her room.

Opening the first door on the right, he saw a large bathroom, he closed that door and went to the second door, which was her bedroom. He placed her on the bed and removed her shoes and cloak. He pulled the covers back from under her, and put them over her to keep her warm. He pulled them up to her chin and gently moved her hair out of her face. Knowing she would think it was weird if he watched her sleep, even though he wanted to stay, he left.

* * *

Master Cyclonis stood in her crystal lab, waiting for the Dark Ace to arrive. She remembered feeling dizzy, and she assumed she fainted, but she wanted to know why she woke up in her bed.

"Master Cyclonis." Dark Ace bowed to her as she turned around.

"Dark Ace, what happened yesterday?" She questioned.

He thought she would ask this. "You fainted, your highness. I didn't think you would want to be taken to the hospital, so I took you to your bedroom." He explained. "I know that I am not allowed in there, but that was the only place to take you." Master Cyclonis nodded.

"Thank you, you may leave." She turned back around and continued to work on her crystals.

"No." Dark Ace walked closer to her. "Why did you faint?" Master Cyclonis saw the determined look on his face, and knew he wouldn't leave without her explaining. _He does care about me, _she thought, _but as a person or just as Master Cyclonis?_

"I've been busy with my experiments lately," She said, "I haven't been sleeping and eating as much as I should."

"You need to take better care of yourself. Make sure that you do." Dark Ace insisted, Master Cyclonis smirked.

"Well, I might… On one condition." He was frowning now. "I want you to train me in Sky Fu."

"What for? Don't you already know Sky Fu?" He didn't mean to sound rude, but it didn't make sense, and he was frustrated that she wasn't taking care of her health.

"Not well enough, twice I've been beaten by that Storm Hawk girl," She frowned before smiling again, "And who better to teach me than the best fighter in Atmos." _Master Cyclonis was beaten? _Dark Ace thought, _the Storm Hawk girl? I think I heard something about that, the Ultimate Warrior Championships or something, but she said twice. Wait, did she call me the best fighter in Atmos? Even though I fail some missions because that Sky Knight beats me? She must really believe in me._

"Alright, I'll train you. But you have to eat and sleep right. Especially with training, you'll need it more. We'll start tomorrow, six in the morning. You know where my private training room is?" Dark Ace said and Master Cyclonis nodded. "Meet me outside there." He knew he sounded bossy, but he took training seriously.

_Great, _Master Cyclonis thought, _now I can improve my Sky Fu and spend time with Dark Ace!_

_Even if I can't have a relationship with her, _Dark Ace thought, _I can at least spend time with her._

* * *

Waking up at 5am, Master Cyclonis dragged herself out of bed. _Why am I up this early? Oh yeah, Dark Ace! _She thought, smiling and going to her personal kitchen to make herself some cereal. After that she showered and dressed, spending longer than usual on her hair and make-up. _I want to look good for Dark Ace, even if it will get messed up during training. _She left her room and made her way through the long corridors leading to Dark Ace's training room. She waited outside the room at five minutes to six. She leant against the wall for a few minutes until Dark Ace arrived. He unlocked the door and led her inside. It was a large room, there were objects against the walls that could be moved and a range of weapons. Master Cyclonis and Dark Ace warmed up for a couple of minutes before he spoke.

"I'll need to see how well you can fight first, so I know what to improve." He explained to her. "So we'll spar for a bit, no weapons." Master Cyclonis nodded. They got into fighting stances, and he told her to attack first. He blocked all of her attacks, and decided to test her defences. He found she only knew basic blocks, and her reflexes were too slow. He also now knew how easy he had to go on her to make sure it was a tough fight for her but so that he didn't hurt her, since his fighting skills were much more advanced than hers.

"Okay, that's enough." He stepped away from her, she was panting.

"So, do you know what you need to teach me?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Mostly, rest for a moment and we'll carry on." He handed her a bottle of water. When they started sparring again, Dark Ace watched Master Cyclonis closely, and found that she was also quite flexible.

* * *

For a little while Dark Ace improved her form for basic moves, showing her the best ways to kick, punch, block and other things.

"Okay, now I'll show you how to get out of situations where your opponent grabs you and is holding you." Dark Ace moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her tightly, holding her arms in place just above her elbow. "Figure out how to get out of this." _I hope it takes her a while, _he thought, _it's nice to hold her like this. _She tried standing on his foot, not actually doing it, but gently pressing her foot on his so he knew what she meant. "Won't work." She tried kicking his leg, "Nope." Eventually Dark Ace gave her a hint and they practised the movement a few times. _Too bad he gave me a hint, _Master Cyclonis thought, _I was enjoying that. _They went through a few more scenarios, one of which being her face down on the ground, with Dark Ace on top of her, holding her wrists. They sparred again, and Master Cyclonis used a few things she learned that morning. As they fought, Dark Ace accidentally punched her in the stomach, hard. She fell back, hitting her head against the wall. She lay on the ground and he knelt down next to her, to make sure she was alright.

"Your head is bleeding." His eyes were wide, _I didn't mean to hurt her! _He helped her to sit up and examined her head. "It doesn't look too bad, but you should lie down in your room for a bit." He was relieved, the bleeding had almost stopped already. _He looks really worried, it's cute. _She thought. She nodded and he pulled her to her feet. "Will you be alright?" She nodded again. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." She drank some water before they left and Dark Ace walked her back to her room. "You know," She said as they got there, "I feel really short standing next to you." She looked up at him, he seemed surprised at the random comment. Then he smiled and bent his knees, making him slightly shorter than her. She grinned, "Much better." They both laughed a little and he stood up straight.

"You were impressive today, you learn fast." He said as she unlocked her bedroom door. "The same thing tomorrow?" She nodded and thanked him as he left.


	3. Snow

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long to get out, I kinda lost inspiration for this fic, but it's back now.

Thanks for reviewing _AngelOfFate12, Mitoki-hime, Necrotimer, blueneko8 _and_ Smartkitty314._

Summary: Dark Ace x Master Cyclonis. Things that happen which lead to Dark Ace and Master Cyclonis becoming a couple.

Disclaimer: I do not own _Storm Hawks_.

**The Things That Bring Us Together**

Chapter Three - Snow

Dark Ace growled slightly as he flew into the fog to escape his pursuers. It wasn't that they were strong, it was that if he defeated any, more showed up, and they wouldn't stop following him. Plus the crystal he had gotten from Terra Saharr was fragile so he couldn't risk it being damaged in battle. Quickly checking that the crystal Master Cyclonis wanted, and the other crystal he had bought, were safe, he flew down, hoping to leave through the bottom of the fog and lose his pursuers. As the fog got thinner, he realised there was a terra there and quickly pulled up to avoid crashing into a rock. The rock scraper the skimmer, damaging it and sending Dark Ace crashing to the ground. He groaned slightly as he pushed himself up and went to check his skimmer, it was badly damaged and would need serious repairs to fly again, which he couldn't do from where he was. Frowning, he kicked it lightly and walked away, hoping to find a town where he could find things to fix his skimmer, or a radio to contact Cyclonia.

* * *

After wondering across the terra for what he assumed was a couple of hours, as he didn't have anything to tell the time, Dark Ace guessed that the terra was uninhabited. He sighed at the thought of having to wait so long to get back to Cyclonia, Master Cyclonis wouldn't be impressed that he had taken so long, plus he already missed training with her. Seeing as it was also starting to get dark, he attempted to get back to his skimmer to find something to set up camp for the night. But so far he was having no luck, the entire terra was covered in thick snow and it all looked the same to him. The only thing he could see that was different was the large cliff, which he didn't remember seeing before so he wondered if his skimmer was on the higher land.

* * *

Master Cyclonis stood in her crystal lab, trying to focus on the crystals and the keys she was pressing rather than the worries that were invading her mind. Her worries were about Dark Ace, his mission was simply to collect a crystal for her from Terra Saharr, it should have only taken a couple of days, however it had already been five days with no contact at all from him. The horrible scenarios her paranoid mind was creating for her became too much and she decided she had to go and look for him. Although it would be bad for people to think she cared too much for him, and she didn't want him to know, she could go under the pretence of needing that crystal, the machine _was_ ready for it, anyway. Determined to make sure he was okay, she left her crystal lab to have her ship prepared.

* * *

After gaining information from several people on Terra Saharr from her crystals, Master Cyclonis had her ship flying near an ever-present thick fog. She'd left the ship on her skimmer, as it was too dangerous to fly the ship through the fog. Her information said that Dark Ace had stolen the crystal for her, then as he was being chased, entered the fog, and the people following him hadn't gone in after him because it was dangerous. She understood why he didn't fight, she warned him in the mission details that the crystal was fragile and to avoid fighting. Flying slower and keeping her eyes out for anything, Master Cyclonis spotted a dark space in front of her. Squinting through the fog, she realised it was a cliff-face and quickly pulled her skimmer up to avoid crashing into it. She retracted her skimmer's wings and stopped her skimmer on the ground, there was a good chance Dark Ace was somewhere on the terra. She wasn't worried about getting lost, her skimmer had a device that would tell her which direction her ship was in. She pulled out a small grey thing and flicked a switch on it. It was a metal detector, if Dark Ace was there, he would be with his skimmer.

* * *

The small metal detector started to beep. _Finally, _Master Cyclonis thought, she'd been driving round for an hour with no luck. Getting off her skimmer she as about to walk around to find where the metal was when her radio buzzed.

"Master..." The voice of one of her Night Crawlers from her ship. "You've been gone for a while, is everything alright?" Frowning, she held down a button and spoke.

"It's fine, I'm still searching." She replied shortly, not bothering to listen to the Night Crawlers' next useless words when Dark Ace was probably nearby. Finding where the beeping was best, she took out a heat detector, she figured when she left the ship that these would come in handy finding him when she wouldn't be able to see clearly. However, the heat detector only sensed her. Annoyed, she grabbed a crystal and blasted the snow out of the way that had been covering the skimmer, and found it severely damaged. Realising he wasn't near it, she went back to her skimmer and stored her metal detector away. Attempting to keep a calm head, she got back onto her skimmer and drove around, this time using her heat detector to try to find him.

* * *

While driving around with her heat detector, a thought occurred to Master Cyclonis. She didn't see the crystal he had collected for her in his skimmer, so he must have it with him. The heat detector was only short range, however she had a crystal that could sense powerful crystals from a distance. Holding it in her hands and closing her eyes, she felt a slight tug in one direction. Opening her eyes, she held the crystal with one hand and drover her skimmer with the other. The tug was also a lot higher than her, so she assumed she had to go up the cliff. She flew up and landed at the top, the tug being right next to her and down now. All she saw was snow. She pulled her heat detector out to check if someone was actually there, it was definitely detecting a heat source below there. _He's been buried in snow?! _She panicked and threw the heat detector and crystal onto her skimmer. Not wanting to blast the snow in case she hurt him, she knelt down and started to dig frantically through the snow with her hands. She didn't even notice her hands going numb as she saw his arm and dug faster. He was lying on his side, unconscious. She grabbed his arms and dragged him out next to her skimmer, then pressed her palm to his face. His skin was freezing cold and deathly pale. She pulled him up onto her skimmer and held him there as she quickly flew them back to her ship.

* * *

Master Cyclonis had left Dark Ace on a bed in a spare room back on her ship. The trip back to Cyclonia wasn't a long one and when they got there, she told the Night Crawler who asked that he was unconscious and she was taking him back to his room. But she took him to her room instead, she knew he was ill and she didn't trust doctors to look after him properly.

She lay him on her bed gently and felt his forehead, he had a fever. She went and got a small ice pack to put on his forehead and noticed that his clothes were still wet. She went down to his room, hiding from anyone in the corridors, not wanting someone to see her going in there, and got some of his warm pyjamas and his bath robe to keep him warm. Back in her room she changed him into his pyjamas, her whole face red as she did, and swore in her mind that there was no way she would bathe him, he would have to live with being unhygienic while he was ill.

* * *

By that night, Dark Ace still hadn't woken up. Master Cyclonis checked on him frequently to make sure he wasn't get any worse, and she had set up some bedding on the floor for her to sleep on. Unfortunately her room had always been very cold, though she had a very warm duvet which kept Dark Ace warm, the spare duvet she was using was only thin. She had only two options to keep warm, the first was to sleep in her bed next to Dark Ace, or she could use his bath robe. Deciding he would prefer the second option over the first, not that she had any intentions of letting him find out that she took care of him, she put on the soft, thick bath robe and tied it around the middle. She checked up on Dark Ace one last time before she lay down in her makeshift bed and snuggled into the bath robe that smelled like Dark Ace. As comfortable as she was in Dark Ace's bath robe, she still wasn't going to get a good night's sleep, she kept waking up, worrying about Dark Ace.

* * *

Around noon of the next day, Dark Ace's eyes slowly slid open. He murmured something and turned his head to the side, the ice pack sliding across his forehead slightly. Master Cyclonis was instantly by his side, checking on him and realising that he wasn't completely awake, and probably wasn't fully aware of what was going on.

"Master... Cyclonis..." He mumbled, seeming to recognise her. She readjusted the ice pack and ran her fingers through his hair gently, calming him. "Birdy..." He muttered, staring at her shoulder. _He's hallucinating. _She thought. Then she took the chance to get him to drink some water. It wasn't long before he fell asleep again, and she figured he wouldn't remember when he was healthy again anyway, or he would just think it was a dream.

* * *

That night Master Cyclonis had the same un-satisfying sleep as the night before, and she was woken up early in the morning by a small 'thunk'. Sitting up abruptly, she saw it was just an empty glass that Dark Ace's arm had knocked over. He moved his arm back so the lower half crossed his stomach, then turned onto his side, the ice pack falling off completely. She stood up and rushed over to him, feeling his forehead. _I think his fever's breaking._ She looked after him for a while, until she knew he was getting better fast and would wake up completely soon. She moved him back to his room and left his clothes and bath robe there. She checked him one more time to make sure he didn't need her there anymore, and left.

* * *

Dark Ace sat on his bed, his hair still dripping from his shower, wondering how he got there, and into his pyjamas, when he remembered collapsing in the snow after not being able to find his broken skimmer on that terra. Sighing, he checked his uniform and found the crystal Master Cyclonis had wanted, as well as the other crystal he got. Knowing he should give the crystal to her, as she would be waiting for it, he stood up to leave when he noticed his bath robe lying on his bed. He picked it up to put it away and noticed a scent on it. The scent was the same as Master Cyclonis' perfume, not that he had ever gone and smelled her, but he would sometimes catch a whiff of it when she walked past, and he liked it.

* * *

"Master Cyclonis." Dark Ace bowed to her in her crystal lab.

"If you're wondering what happened," She cut right to the point, trying to act like she hadn't been worried sick about his health, and ending up sounding slightly cold. "When you didn't show up for five days, I needed my crystal, so you were brought back here and left in your room until you woke up."

"Uh, right..." Dark Ace reached into his pouch, _Why didn't she take it then, why wait for me to wake up? _He thought. "Here it is." He walked forward and held it out to her, she turned around and took it. As she turned back around, Dark Ace slid a box onto her desk, with her name written on the tag. It didn't say it was from him, and it contained a crystal he had gotten for her because he knew she had wanted that one for her collection for a long time. They exchanged a few more words, arranging when they would start training together again, and he left.

* * *

That night Master Cyclonis curled up in her bed, much warmer than she had been the previous two nights, though for some reason she felt cold, and she missed Dark Ace's bath robe. She closed her eyes and relaxed, knowing Dark Ace was healthy and safe, and they would be training together in the afternoon after two days, and fell asleep almost instantly.

* * *

Dark Ace lay in his bed, his bath robe lying next to him, it smelled so much like Master Cyclonis and that relaxed him. He fell asleep and dreamed of her gently stroking his hair and smiling down at him.


End file.
